DENVER (Ticker) -- The Colorado Rockies wasted no time jumping on Curt Schilling and extending the Arizona Diamondbacks' early-season struggles.
Todd Helton belted a three-run homer in the bottom of the first inning as the Rockies posted their seventh straight home win over the Diamondbacks, an 8-3 triumph behind ace Jason Jennings.
Jennings (1-1) allowed three runs and six hits in five-plus innings with one walk and five strikeouts, helping the Rockies complete a sweep of the three-game series.
"It is nice to come out and have a decent start and give us a chance to win, especially in getting the sweep," Jennings said. "To get the sweep in the series with both Randy (Johnson) and Curt throwing is pretty big."
Arizona dropped to 1-5 as Schilling and Johnson continue to struggle. Neither pitcher has a win despite a total of four starts.
"Anytime you can beat two of the best in the game, it's a great confidence builder for the kids in here and the old folks, too," Rockies right fielder Larry Walker said. "We're winning, we're playing well."
Schilling (0-1) could not recover in this one after giving up four runs in the first. He allowed five runs and six hits in five innings. Schilling stuck out seven, but walked three.
"He just wasn't his usual self, especially in the first inning," Arizona manager Bob Brenly said. "He got his pitch count up there pretty quickly. There wasn't much we could do but get him out after five."
"I felt good, I just pitched bad," Schilling added. "Too many pitches, I walked guys. All of the things you could do wrong I did wrong."
The Rockies tied a team record with three outfield assists as Arizona ran itself out of a possible big inning in the sixth, when two runners were thrown out on the bases.
Three Colorado relievers combined for four scoreless innings, allowing four hits.
"Our defense and bullpen won this game," Jennings said. "That was some of the best defense I've seen in one inning in a long time."
Schilling failed to retire the first three batters he faced, walking Chris Stynes and giving up a single to Gabe Kapler in the top of the first before Helton drilled a 2-2 pitch 418 feet over the fence in right-center field.
"You need to get what you can against a guy like that and we got off to a great start," Helton said. "We got some guys on in front of me and he hung a curveball to me."
After getting Walker to line out, Schilling continued to struggle with his control, walking Preston Wilson. Jose Hernandez reached on an infield hit and Brett Butler followed with an RBI single to make it 4-0.
"This is a club full of winners and we're not winning," Schilling said. "Everybody's had a hand in this. It's disappointing, it's frustrating, and we've got to play a game tomorrow and try to figure it out."
The Diamondbacks got two back in the second on consecutive RBI doubles by Mark Grace and Carlos Baerga, but Rockies took a 5-2 lead in the fourth on Kapler's RBI single.
Arizona tried to rally in the sixth, closing within 5-3 on Danny Bautista's run-scoring single. That's when the Diamondbacks' adventures on the bases started. Wilson threw out Craig Counsell at the plate trying to score from second on Luis Gonzalez's single. Later in the inning, Bautista was caught in a rundown tying to come home on a line drive by Grace that was snared by right fielder Walker.
In the fifth inning, Baerga was doubled off first.
"One of the unigue things about this ballpark, the outfield is so big that if you can get some outfielders out there that can throw the ball, you can definitely get an advantage," Rockies manager Clint Hurdle said. "We showed some arm strength out there and we were able to capitalize on some situations."
The Rockies scored single runs in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings to put away the contest. Chris Richard delivered an RBI triple in the sixth before Chad Moeller and Kapler followed with run-scoring singles.
